Poll: Should US leagues use a European league system?

[capone0]

On top of getting rediculous hot, it was basically the first time all year the whole team was actually healthy. Their pitching was outstanding for the playoffs including usually horrid Weaver, (check out him in Seattle this year), Suppan (had a great playoffs).

[J.R.]

Why infect American sports with the bane of European soccer? Its economic disaster.

[TheRover]

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If it is possible for the format of the sport to have a balanced schedule I support it.

I don't think eliminating the playoffs is necessary. Its up to the fans to place the proper emphasis on the regular seasons while treating playoffs as a sort of Champions League.

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Exactly. Playoffs are exciting, even if they don't always crown the best team. If you're so hell bent on identifying the best team, feel free to continue thinking that about whoever has the best record in the regular season. The only reason a Champions league type deal makes sense is if there are multiple leagues that don't play each other, like all of the national European soccer leagues. That's a good way to pit teams together who otherwise wouldn't play. I see no logic in making a giant 16 team playoff based on last year's league finish when these teams are already playing one another in the regular season. Keep the playoffs, enjoy the excitement, and tell anyone who will listen that the Yankees were the 2007 MLB champions.

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[KJS]

I would rather see the addition of a tournament in baseball. Say 140 league games (drop interleague) plus a tournament that includes every team from A-MLB, with different entrance points for each level. Think FA Cup. The draw of possibly having A vs AAA, AA v MLB games, MLB teams in small stadia and a good tourney run by your MLB team that is not going to the postseason all seem cool to me.

Of course it will never happen for a host of reasons.

KJS

[mason55]

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I would rather see the addition of a tournament in baseball. Say 140 league games (drop interleague) plus a tournament that includes every team from A-MLB, with different entrance points for each level. Think FA Cup. The draw of possibly having A vs AAA, AA v MLB games, MLB teams in small stadia and a good tourney run by your MLB team that is not going to the postseason all seem cool to me.

Of course it will never happen for a host of reasons.

KJS

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The US Open cup in soccer is pretty fun for all the reasons you listed

[bernie]

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For those who don't know in Europe the bottom 2/3 clubs are kicked out of the league each year

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I don't think kicking a team out would fly in the US. Especially with taxpayers paying for the buildings. There's too much money tied up, community-wise for that.

I'm not sure how the euro leagues get around that. Maybe their stadiums are less elaborate? Privately funded?

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[bernie]

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Yes, relegation is awesome, but baseball is so [censored] up with the minor leagues and how they are independently owned/operated that it could never become a reality.

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I think it'd work with all pro sports leagues regardless of their minor league offshoots. After all, minor leagues wouldn't need to move into the 'main' league. Just a new team formed altogether for the bigger league.

But, as you said, it will never become a reality.

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[bernie]

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Guys, forget about the relagation system. I would be in favor of anything that puts more emphasis on regular season games, and effectively ends the gambit known as the playoffs for deciding champions.

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The abundance of meaningless regular season games suck. Though with baseball, because it has so many games, I don't see most reg season games ever really being that meaningful.

I would settle to start with just making divisional games much more meaningful.

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[bernie]

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2. The MLB playoffs are an enormous crapshoot (see: 2006 Cardinals). There is less variance in football.


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Yknow, I've never understood this. Football is like a poker tourney. One bad day and you could be done for the year, especially in the playoffs. With MLB, there's more games to compensate for a single bad game which makes it more likely that deserving teams make the postseason. Wouldn't that make football more variance?


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[TheRover]

each baseball game is so high variance and each NFL game so relatively low that the extra games don't really make up for it in the postseason.